Croxteth-Park

CROXTETH-PARK, an extra-parochial liberty, in the union and hundred of West Derby, S. division of Lancashire, 4 miles (W. N. W.) from Prescot. This place anciently belonged to Robert Fitz-Henry, ancestor of the family of Lathom. It came subsequently into the possession of Edmund, Earl of Lancaster, son of Henry III., and remained in the crown until 1446, when Henry VI. by letters-patent granted Croxteth to Sir Richard Molyneux, whose descendants, now represented by the Earl of Sefton, have ever since held the property. There are few dwellings in the liberty; the area of which is 953 acres. A tributary of the little river Alt bounds it, and flows through the park attached to Croxteth Hall: the road from Liverpool to St. Helen's passes on the south. The Hall, erected in 1702, and situated in the adjoining district parish of West Derby, is of brick, with stone dressings, and has a terrace in front, ascended by a broad flight of steps: the back part, formerly of wood and plaster, was rebuilt in 1805 of brick. There is a stone-quarry. The tithes of the liberty have been commuted for £152.

Transcribed from A Topographical Dictionary of England, by Samuel Lewis, 7th edition, published in 1848.